Month: January 2026

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Originally posted at: Salley Carson’s White Sleeveless Collared Dress

I’ll soon turn 79. That means I’m not “approaching” 80 – I’m entering my 80th year.

And I’m doing so with energy, clarity, and a sense of forward momentum – not diminishing.

For many women, birthdays ending in zero can feel sobering. For me, this one feels expansive. Not because life is simpler (it isn’t), or because change has slowed (it hasn’t), but because I’m clearer than ever about how I want to live – now and in the years to come.

Thriving Isn’t an Age – It’s an Intention

Last year, I wrote about how I was thriving in reFirement – not retirement. Those five F words are even more important to me now: family, fulfillment, fun, friends, and fitness.

Since then, my life has evolved. I’ve moved into a continuing care retirement community (CCRC), embraced a new rhythm of daily living, and entered a chapter focused on redirecting rather than stepping back.

Here’s what’s surprised me most: thriving at this age and stage isn’t about staying busy or proving vitality. It’s about intentionality –choosing what matters and releasing what doesn’t.

Turning Intention into Action

Last year, I set a Big Grin Goal that felt both practical and deeply personal: to begin transitioning to a CCRC before my 80th birthday. I aimed to relocate from a position of strength, choice, and curiosity – not urgency.

I reached my goal earlier than planned, and what I discovered was unexpected. Rather than feeling like a retreat from my previous home, this move has brought renewed energy. Having future health care needs carefully planned has eased a quiet layer of concern. This wasn’t about downsizing my life. It was about right-sizing it.

Entering my 80th year, I feel less pressure to do everything and more freedom to do what’s meaningful.

Living a New Chapter, Lightly Held

Living in a community where meal preparation, home maintenance, and future health care are addressed has freed up something precious: mental bandwidth.

I’m not preoccupied with “what ifs.” Instead, I’m more present for “what nows.”

That doesn’t mean my days are quiet or my calendar empty. Quite the opposite. It means my energy is better directed toward writing, mentoring, building friendships, lifelong learning, and creative projects that light me up. The setting supports my life, rather than competing with it.

And importantly, this move was not an ending. It was a significant new transition. Fun!

The Power of a Big Grin Goal

Each year, I set what I call a Big Grin Goal – something that stretches me just enough to spark joy, purpose, and maybe a little nervous excitement.

For the upcoming year, my Big Grin Goal is deeply personal and quietly ambitious: to complete a revised edition of Moving Forward on Your Own: A Financial Guidebook for Widows, which I originally wrote several years ago, after my husband’s death. This new edition will include a section called “The Journey Continues,” highlighting the wisdom that develops after major life transitions.

This isn’t about revisiting the past. It’s about honoring how much life unfolds after major transitions – and how much wisdom we gain along the way as elders.

What matters here isn’t just the project itself, but what it symbolizes: a belief that creative contribution never expires and that meaningful work can stay with us well into later life.

My Energy Looks Different – and That’s Good

Let me be clear: entering my 80th year doesn’t mean I feel 50. Nor do I aspire to. What I feel is grounded.

My energy today is more selective and less scattered. I say yes more thoughtfully – and no more easily. I value deep conversations over busy schedules, progress over perfection, and purpose over speed.

This isn’t about doing more. It’s about doing what fits.

Redefining What “Forward” Means

We often measure aging by what we lose – roles, speed, familiarity. But there is another measure: what we gain.

For me, moving forward at this stage of life isn’t about speed or distance. It’s about direction.

Perspective. Patience. Self-trust.

I’m more comfortable living with uncertainty now than I was decades ago. I know that life will keep changing and evolving, and that I can change with it.

Entering my 80th year, I’m not focused on how long I’ll live. I’m focused on how well I’ll live, and how consciously I’ll choose my days.

A Gentle Invitation

If you’re nearing a milestone birthday – or simply sensing a transition of your own – I invite you to pause and ask:

• What does thriving look like now?
• What would it mean to live your next chapter intentionally?
• What is one Big Grin Goal that could energize the year ahead?

It doesn’t have to be large or public. It just needs to matter to you.

The Journey Continues

Aging, I’ve learned, isn’t about winding down – it’s about opening up. Clarifying what matters. Letting go of what no longer helps. Staying curious. Staying involved.

As I enter my 80th year, I do so not with a checklist, but with a posture – open, intentional, and grateful for the journey that continues to unfold.

And that, to me, feels like thriving.

Let’s Have a Conversation:

What’s one intentional choice – or Big Grin Goal – you’d like to set for the year ahead?

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Style Stealers

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Originally posted at: Heather Gay’s Light Blue Draped Sleeveless Dress and Shell Bag

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Style Stealers

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Originally posted at: Britani Bateman’s Pink Strapless Ruched Maxi Dress

Over the years, like all mothers, I embarrassed my children on a regular basis. I had a variety of ways of doing this, but one of the most embarrassing was when I’d approach perfect strangers in the dental aisle of the grocery store. As a dental hygienist and an educator, when I saw someone confused over which toothbrush or toothpaste to buy, I ignored my kids’ pleas (“MOM! That is a stranger! Stop talking to them!”) and I’d try to help. I almost couldn’t help myself and it looks like I still can’t!

Much has changed since I graduated from Dental Hygiene school in 1983. At that time older adults assumed they would lose their teeth. Both the importance of teeth to overall health and the link between oral health and overall health had not been established. Back then medicine didn’t recognize that the head was actually attached to the body!

Today, only about 5% of people over 65 wear full dentures and the benefits of keeping your teeth along with a healthy oral cavity are clear. Let’s look at why the health of your teeth and the oral cavity is important to your overall health, what causes tooth loss, and the challenges that we experience in caring for our teeth as we age.

How the Teeth and the Oral Cavity Affect the Body

Missing and broken teeth affect your bite and can cause grinding and clenching. This can irritate jaw muscles and lead to pain and headaches.

Missing and broken teeth can impact speech clarity.

Food digestion starts in the mouth. Without a functioning dentition and salivary glands food cannot be properly chewed and mixed with enzymes in the saliva to prepare it for proper nutrient absorption. The inability to chew properly can lead to a higher risk of choking and discomfort in digestion.

The oral cavity has a microbiome, a collection of microbes such as bacteria and viruses. As with the gut microbiome, an imbalance of healthy microbes to harmful microbes causes the immune system to respond with inflammation and a variety of health problems.

Chronic inflammation occurs when harmful bacteria form plaque along the gumline. This chronic inflammation can affect both Type I and Type II Diabetes, as well as other chronic diseases.

What Causes Tooth Loss

Bacteria/Decay

Bacteria in the mouth produce acids which break down enamel leading to its destruction. Early enamel loss can be reversed (good news!), but if not, bacteria can further break down the tooth and eventually enter and infect the tooth’s nerve.

Gum Disease

Bleeding gums, when brushing is not normal, is a sign of early gum disease known as gingivitis. Untreated gingivitis can lead to an advanced type of gum disease known as periodontitis. Periodontitis causes destruction of the teeth’s bone support system, loosening the teeth.

Other Factors

Contributing factors include smoking, sugary and/or acidic foods and drinks, frequent snacking, and poor oral hygiene practices.

Age Related Challenges

As our lifetimes extend, some of the oral and physical changes we experience can make caring for our teeth more challenging. Several factors increase the incidence of tooth loss in older adults.

Dry Mouth

As we age, our bodies naturally create less saliva and that, coupled with medications which cause dry mouth, contributes to a greater risk of decay.

Exposed Roots

Remember when elders were called “long in the tooth”? This is because even in healthy mouths some bone loss occurs over decades and with that comes root exposure. The root, without enamel to protect it, is more susceptible to decay.

Acid Reflux

Stomach acids can erode enamel.

Love of Sweet Treats

Age related predilection to sweet flavors.

Dexterity Changes

Arthritis and neurological changes can make brushing and flossing more difficult.

Access to Care

This can be due to finances, inadequate insurance, lack of transportation, low health care literacy, and mobility challenges in the dental office itself.

As we have learned in our many decades of life, knowledge is power! In the next articles I’ll be sharing best practices for caring for your teeth and oral cavity, preventing dental diseases, and accessing care. If you have any topics you’d like me to address that would be of general interest to our peer group, please comment below.

Let’s Have a Conversation:

How well do you care for your teeth? Do you do it for better health or to keep your smile bright? In what area of oral health do you think you lack enough information?